Fairfield -

FAIRFIELD â€“ Kennebec Valley Community College has begun advertising for a full-time Solar Thermal Instructor as it gears up to launch an ambitious solar heating and cooling training intitiative across the entire Northeast and New York beginning in January 2011.

The College is seeking the instructor in preparation for the active training phase of the â€śNortheast Solar Heating and Cooling Instructor Training Project.â€ť The project is part of the Solar Instructor Training Network, a program funded by the United States Department of Energy (DOE).

The project will send KVCC instructors to colleges, technical high schools, and other sites across the region to introduce the latest solar heating and cooling system installation techniques to those best-equipped to pass the knowledge on to a wider audience through a top-down â€śtrain the trainersâ€ť approach.

The goal is to increase the quality and availability of instruction related to the installation of these solar systems in the following states: Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New York, Rhode Island, and Vermont.

Professional development activities will target instructors from community colleges, career & technical education centers, apprenticeship programs and private industry training incubators in the Northeast Region who are looking to enhance their existing plumbing, heating, ventilation, air conditioning (HVAC); pre-engineering, and environmental technology programs. These activities will be supported by a mobile training laboratory and an on-campus solar heating and cooling lab that will be the only facility of its kind on a college campus in New England once complete.

The course will be tailored towards the North American Board of Certified Energy Practitionersâ€™ (NABCEP) solar thermal task analysis and participants will be eligible to pursue NABCEP certification.

â€śUtilizing the sun to create heat for hot water, space heating, and air conditioning is essential to reducing our carbon footprint and our reliance on fossil fuels. However, to make sure this vision becomes reality, it is essential that this technology is installed properly and cost effectively. Thus, it is critical that technicians are trained properly on the most up to date technology and installation methods,â€ť said Dana Doran, Director of Energy Programs at KVCC.

On October 8, 2009, the Solar Instructor Training Network was launched by the DOE in partnership with the U.S. Departments of Labor and Education, to address a critical need for high-quality, local, and accessible training in solar system design, installation, sales, and inspection. KVCC was selected by DOE as one of nine regional resource and training providers across the United States to support this project, winning a $3.3 million grant from DOE to fund the effort.

KVCC began incorporating elements of renewable energy education in its Electrical Technology program in 1995 and has expanded its role in such education steadily over the years through both credit and non-credit courses and training programs.

The teaching of small wind turbine and solar-electric system design and installation in its Electrical Technology program coupled with the Collegeâ€™s many â€śgreenâ€ť Professional Development courses and training programs has put KVCC in the center of Maine and national efforts to expand education in this growing sector of the economy.

In the 15 years since becoming a renewable energy education pioneer in Maine, KVCC has maintained its success in the arena by focusing on delivering high-quality programs that respond to the needs of industries on the front lines of green efforts in the state. The surge in demand for such education is now allowing the College to capitalize on this early experience and emerge as a regional leader in the field.

The College is now in the process of creating The KVCC Energy Services and Technology Center in the Muriel P. Frye Building on its campus. This unique facility will consolidate the Collegesâ€™ energy and efficiency programs in an educational hub destined to become the premiere centralized resource for training and education for energy services and renewable energy technologies in the region.

For more information on the KVCC Northeast Solar Heating and Cooling Instructor Training Project go to http://www.kvcc.me.edu/NESolar/ or contact Dana Doran at ddoran@kvcc.me.edu or 207-453-5157.